


Prescription

by EtherealCelestialBodies



Category: The Umbrella Academy (TV)
Genre: Alternate Timelines, Ben Hargreeves Deserves Better, Comfort, Drug Addiction, Drug Use, Fluff, Good Sister Vanya Hargreeves, How Do I Tag, Hurt/Comfort, Klaus Hargreeves Needs A Hug, Klaus Hargreeves Needs Help, My First Fanfic, Other characters mentioned - Freeform, Platonic Cuddling, Pre-Canon, Protective Vanya Hargreeves, Roommates, Stealing, Vanya Hargreeves Deserves Better, Violins, Wholesome
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2019-07-01
Updated: 2019-07-06
Packaged: 2020-05-16 17:37:31
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 2
Words: 5,536
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/19322923
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/EtherealCelestialBodies/pseuds/EtherealCelestialBodies
Summary: “Mrs. Kowalski, I’ve told you, Mr. Puddles isn’t-” Vanya stopped short at she opened the door.  “K-klaus?”Her brother stood in her hallway, leaning against the doorway.“Hey, Vanya.” His voice was more slured than usual.“Wha-what are you doing here?”  It had been a long time since she’d seen him.“Surprise?”  He shrugged.  “I was just around town and thought I’d stop by. . .”He turned to glare at something down the hallway, murmuring a “Shut up,” under his breath.  He whipped back to Vanya, but swayed a little, having to brace himself on the doorframe.  He gave a weak grin at his sister.  She reached a hand out to steady him.“What the hell happened to you?”





	1. Late Nights

Vanya moved her fingers across the strings. The song had become so familiar, it was practically all muscle memory at this point, coming to her naturally and without a second thought. Her eyes strayed from the sheet music, eventually closing. The melody coursed through her. Everything around her faded away, melting into the background, until she was alone with the song. . .

Until her hand slipped just short of its place, playing a B#, rather than a B natural. The wrong note screeched out from the strings, pulling her from the moment. Her apartment rematerialized as she opened her eyes. 

To any casual listener, it probably wouldn't have sounded as if she’d done anything wrong, but the tone still rang in her ears after she set down the violin. 

It was a sign to call it a night. 

Vanya snuck a glance at the clock as she packed up the instrument. 11:30 at night.

She cursed under her breath. She’d probably been annoying the entire complex with her playing. Nobody had made any complaints about her lessons or rehearsals. Yet. She hoped it stayed that way, but she was walking on thin ice with this late weeknight playing.

Hastily, she gathered the music from her stand. She could work on the piece the next day, sometime between her lessons and group rehearsal. Until then, she just needed to rest, to reset herself.

Tiredness finally hit her. She pulled her anxiety medication from her right pocket, placing one of the capsules into her mouth. Vanya had lost track of time. She needed to have taken this hours ago. 

She went to the bathroom and placed the bottle on the rim of the sink. She risked a glance in the mirror. WIth the dark circles under her eyes, she looked nearly as tired as she felt.

Slipping between her sheets, she planned for the next day. Orchestra rehersal at 7:30, lessons at 1:00. . . Unconsciousness took hold, and her thoughts faded as she was pulled into sleep. 

A harsh knocking jolted Vanya from her sleep. Who could be there at this hour of the night? That had to be at least as disruptive as her music.

The old woman next door had become more demanding with the searches for her cat, checking multiple times a day, but Vanya hadn’t expected her to be up this late. 

She quickly slipped a pair of shorts under her oversized sleep shirt. Rushing from the room, she placed her hand on the knob. 

“Mrs. Kowalski, I’ve told you, Mr. Puddles isn’t-” Vanya stopped short at she opened the door. “K-klaus?”

Her brother stood in her hallway, leaning against the doorway. 

“Hey, Vanya.” His voice was more slured than usual.

“Wha-what are you doing here?” It had been a long time since she’d seen him.

“Surprise?” He shrugged. “I was just around town and thought I’d stop by. . .” 

He turned to glare at something down the hallway, murmuring a “Shut up,” under his breath. He whipped back to Vanya, but swayed a little, having to brace himself on the doorframe. He gave a weak grin at his sister. She reached a hand out to steady him.

“What the hell happened to you?” 

His hair was greasy and disheveled around his face, his shirt and coat stained with splatters and smears God-knows-what. Even in the dim light, Vanya could see that the skin around Klaus’s eye was beginning to bruise. Blood streaked his cheek and above his lip, like he’d tried to wipe it a bleeding nose. The pungent smell of smoke and alcohol wafted from him.

“You see, I was having a hell of a night, and got into some trouble and. . .”

She crossed her arms.

“Look, I didn’t know where else to go.”

“Jesus, Klaus.” She ran a hand through her hair. After a second, she pulled him out of the hallway.

He stumbled his way in. Vanya wondered how he’d managed to make his way to her apartment from wherever he had been without ending up collapsed on the ground. 

“You can sleep on the couch.” She nodded towards it. “Uh, if you need anything, I’m right down the hall. . .”

“Thanks, V,” he said with a wink. 

Klaus passed out the second he hit the pillow. She pulled a throw blanket over him and stood by the couch for a second. What was she going to do with him?

Vanya grabbed her wallet from the coffee table. 

She loved her brother. Of course she did. As much as she’d been excluded by the other six, she still cared for them more than more than anything else in the world. They were family. But giving Klaus free range of her house with any of her valuables strewn around? At that point she was just begging for him to steal. 

With a realization, she grabbed a few bottles of liquor from her kitchen. The last thing she needed was Klaus going through her alcohol. She’d hide those somewhere in her room. 

She gave a last glance back as her passed out brother, shaking her head. What had he done this time? He was very clearly high. Maybe drunk. Probably some awful combination of the two. The last time she’d seen him, he’d been in rehab. It didn’t seem to be sticking with him.  
In fact he seemed worse than then.

As much as Klaus was still the little boy from their childhood, so much had changed about him. He’d never been the best behaved child, always running about and joking, but he was just a hyperactive child. Nothing dangerous came from it aside from the occasional mishap while climbing trees or playing with Diego’s knives. 

Then their father had taken him to the mausoleum, and Klaus changed.

Even Vanya, who didn’t spend much time around her siblings noticed it. He withdrew. Every night for weeks, the entire manor would awake to Klaus’ screaming. His normally upbeat personality became paranoid and jumpy. And after Five disappeared, Klaus was a completely different person.

Late at night, he began sneaking out. He would sneak pills from their father’s medical room, or liquor from behind the bar in the hall. As he got older, he started stealing money from Reginald, buying harder, more illicit substances, before leaving the Academy altogether. 

When they were younger, Vanya didn’t understand. It wasn’t until the past few years that she realized that his behaviour had come from more than their shared trauma in the Academy, but from his powers specifically. She felt bad for him, but what could she do? She didn’t have powers, let alone the ability to empathize with the consequences of them. 

Would Klaus steal Ibuprofen from the medicine cabinet? Better safe than sorry, she thought as she ducked into the bathroom to grab the little bottle. 

She returned to her room. The clock by her bed flashed 1:23. With rehearsal early next morning, she was pushing her time limits. Quickly, she stashed the items around her room, hopefully hidden enough to dissuade Klaus, and slid back into bed. 

 

\---

Vanya’s eyes snapped open. Sun streaked through the curtains. That was not a good sign. She glanced at the alarm clock. 6:45. She’d slept through her alarm. And with only fifteen minutes to get ready before she had to leave the house, she was already looking at a stressful day. 

She pulled on a sweater and some pants, pulling up her hair into a messy ponytail. She rushed out of her room and gathered her things for the day.

Klaus was still on her couch. She’d almost forgotten he was there. He still slept, though he tossed and turned underneath the blanket, muttering to himself. 

There wasn’t time to make coffee, but some still remained in the french press from the day before. Forcing down a mug of the cold coffee, she made for the door.

Klaus woke with a start, shooting up. He looked around the apartment as if he too had forgotten he was there. His eyes met Vanya’s.

“I have to go to rehearsal now.” She hefted her violin up for him to see. “There’s some coffee left,” she said, scratching behind her head. What was she supposed to say? She hadn’t talked to him in years, and now he was crashing in her living room. “Um, there’s food in the fridge if you need it. . .”

“Yeah, yeah, thanks mom.”

Despite herself, Vanya smiled. 

“I’ll be back in a few hours. And I cancelled my lessons. So we can talk about. . .this.” She gestured generally towards Klaus.

“I’ll see you then.” He winked, lounging back onto her couch.

Vanya locked the door behind her as she left her apartment. She had no idea what she was going to do with him. 

But there was no time for that. Vanya was almost late for another rehearsal, and the last thing she needed was to make a scene. 

\---

“C'mon, she’s gotta have something in here.” Klaus muttered.

“You probably shouldn’t do that.” Ben sat cross-legged on the couch. “Stealing from dad was one thing, but Vanya? Really?”

“Family’s about sharing. Can I even call her my sister if she doesn’t lend me some alcohol in a time of need?” 

Ben rolled his eyes. Klaus waved him off, continuing rooting around the kitchen. 

“I can’t find anything! Not a single thing.” He slammed the last cabinet. Deep in thought, he furrowed his brow. “Where would dear old Vanya hide the goods?”

He spun around, looking through the apartment for a revelation. He went back over to the couch, sitting beside his brother.

“Any ideas, Benjamin?” 

“I’m not enabling this.” 

“Fine. You and your “morals”.” Klaus collapsed into the upholstered seat with a dramatic sigh.

“I’ve got it!” He sprang up. “The bathroom!”

“Please don’t!” Ben called from the couch as Klaus hurried through the hallway.

“My, my what do we have here?”

\---

“That’ll be enough for today. I’ll see you all tomorrow”

Vanya set down her violin, wiping sweat from her brow. Her heart was still pounding to the tempo. She slumped into her chair, trying to pull herself from the song. In front of her, Helen had already finished storing her violin and was on her way out. She looked like she’d just stepped from a runway. How did she manage to look like that after a full rehearsal schedule?

She placed the instrument back into its case, the bow carefully placed above it. It was the same bow her father had given to her as a child. Her siblings had been playing upstairs, their mom had been in the kitchen prepping dinner. Vanya just wanted something to do, something to prove that while she didn’t have her sibling’s powers, she could be worthwhile. 

And there, beside Reginald Hargreeves himself, was the violin. He’d just given it to her, as if it were nothing.

When she’d first played it, she could’ve sword she seen a change in his demeanor. He almost seemed. . . proud. But that couldn’t be right. She’d never been nothing but ordinary to him. . .

“You can leave now,” the firm voice of her director called. The room was empty, except for the two of them. Everyone else had left while Vanya sat lost in her thoughts.

“Of course. Yes sir.”

A blush ran up her neck, and she quickly grabbed the rest of her things. She rushed out, back outside. Time had been slipping by her to easily lately. 

Even after leaving the hall, her heart was racing. She realized with a start that she hadn’t taken her medication that morning.

She reached into her right pocket for her medication. Feeling nothing, Vanya frantically searched her person for the missing bottle. Nothing.

“Shit,” she cursed aloud. 

She must have left her medication on the counter that morning. And now it was alone with Klaus when he needed it the least and she needed it the most. Of course.

Her blood rushed, intense and loud in her ears as she ran back home.

\---

There were only three pills in the little prescription bottle. That would have to do. Klaus tipped them into his mouth, dry swallowing the medication and pocketing the bottle. Ben stood in the doorway, arms crossed, head shaking. 

“What?”

“You’re stealing our sister’s anxiety medication. And I have to sit here and watch you do it.”

Klaus stuck out his tongue and walked through the manifestation of his brother back to the living room.

He collapsed back onto the couch waiting for whatever he’d ingested to kick in. Ben sat on the floor, book in hand. After a few minutes, Klaus sat up.

“This is taking forever.”

“Maybe because it’s anxiety medication? It’s not like Vanya has club drugs sitting around.”

“Probably. . .But you’d think I would feel something.”

He lay back down, staring up into the ceiling fan. Thoughts drifting to the spinning blades, Klaus zoned out.

Suddenly, it hit him like a wave. It felt like a switch flicked off in him, shaking him back into the moment. Then, like nothing had happened, he felt normal again. He waited for the effect, a racing in his heart, the slowing of his thoughts, anything. But nothing came to him.

He fished the bottle back out of his coat, realizing he had no idea what he’d just taken. Underneath ‘Vanya Hargreeves’ was the name of the drug. It was completely unfamiliar, which surprised Klaus. He’d tried everything from Ritalin, Prozac, to Oxcontin. But this was new.

“Hey, Ben, you have any idea what-” 

He glanced up. His brother was nowhere to be seen. Klaus shot up. His brother’s image almost always stuck around the corners of his vision. Sometimes he was a little more fuzzy or translucent, but he was always there. Ben was a constant, unlike the other ghosts around him. He was his only constant. Klaus had been in and out of various homes and centers since he’d left the Academy. But Ben was always there.

And now he was just gone.

“Ben? Ben!”

No response came from the room.

And for the first time in years, Klaus was truly alone.


	2. Suppressed

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> “Klaus!” The rain pounded against the window pane, nearly drowning out her yell.
> 
> “Actually that had something to do with this. Hear me out.”
> 
> “Okay, okay. Shoot.”
> 
> Vanya handed him a glass, and he greedily pulled it from her hands. Klaus took a long sip and a deep breath. 
> 
> “I don’t know how to say put this delicately, so I’ll just say it. I can see Ben. I’ve kinda been able to for a while now.”
> 
> But, Klaus hadn’t been able to channel anyone for years. . .“How long is “a while”?”
> 
> “Since he died.”

Ben waited for the familiar fuzziness to fill his senses. Most prescriptions did that to him. The pills, whatever they were, would kick in soon. While not given a high by drugs, per se, Ben could definitely feel when Klaus used them. Opioids and stimulants sent a buzz through his not-quite-corporeal form, while depressants left his limbs drifting through the landscape.

The two sat in Vanya’s living room. Klaus lie on the couch, staring up at the ceiling fan, while Ben looked out the window to the streets below.

Then, everything was just gone, filled by an inky blackness. It’s as if he’d never been in the apartment. As he closed his eyes, nothing changed. Still an all encompassing blackness.

He’d been by his brother’s side for years now, materializing soon after he’d died, and sticking with him ever since. No matter what Klaus did, it was never enough to send him away. Not completely at least.

Not that it mattered very much - whenever Klaus got high, not even Ben could pull him from the moment. It got lonely when that happened. . .

The two had never been able to figure out why Ben stayed longer than the other dead. Nights when Klaus had been too out of it to sleep, they’d talked about their theories and ideas. Perhaps it had been their close bond from childhood. They had been raised as siblings for nearly eighteen years. Maybe their mysterious circumstances from birth had formed a supernatural connection between the brothers. It could even be related to the horror living within Ben, tying him to Klaus’ otherworldly powers in some way.

But here he was. Somewhere. And Klaus wasn’t by his side. He was floating, weightless, existing in a dream-like form. (God, it had been a long time since he’d had a dream. . .)

He tried to turn his head. His body moved, he was pretty sure, but just barely. Every motion was slow and stiff, like his very essence was being smeared across the dark landscape, dissolving him into the void.

“Klaus?”

His voice made no sound in the darkness. Ben wasn’t even sure he’d said it. The word stayed heavy in the back of his throat.

“Klaus!”

The silence remained. There was simply nothing.

 

\- - -

His head was pounding. Maybe he would take Vanya up on her offer for coffee, seeing as she had nothing remotely alcoholic in her kitchen. How did she even manage that? He would’ve thought, being a fellow Hargreeves child would fuck her up, at least a little bit. How did Vanya cope without the sweet, sweet taste of alcohol?

“Ben? C’mon man this isn’t funny.” He started searching around the apartment. “Look, I know you’re mad at me, but you don’t need to do this now.”

He rubbed his temples, panic rising in his chest. Nobody answered.

“I’m serious!” He shouted, emphasizing with a stomp. “This isn’t funny!”

It finally struck. Ben was gone. No warning, no reason as to why. Just, poof, and he was no longer with Klaus.

None of it made sense.

Sweating, his skin was clammy, sticking to his shirt. He threw his coat off. He stood in the middle of the room, shaking. Klaus was definitely not high. If anyone knew what that felt like, it was him. In fact, it was as if he was still coming down from the night before, going into an early withdrawal.

And Ben never left. He was his constant, his anchor.

He hadn’t noticed it before, but he felt different. The ache in his stomach had covered it at first. Something was missing, leaving nothing but an empty pit in him. It took the place of the tether keeping him to Ben. It was as if an integral part of Klaus had vanished.

The two had always been closer to each other than the other Hargreeves children. Their powers were more than just facets of their lives, more than just minor inconveniences at the worst of times. Torn up from the inside, they were forced to live with darkness that was simply inherent to them. They were the only two who knew what it was like to have a power they didn’t want. He distracted Ben from the unstoppable destructive force within him, and Ben helped distract him from the nonstop chatter of the dead. Through childhood, Ben had been Klaus’ greatest comfort, and in death, he’d followed suit.

He was coming down and absolutely alone.

 

\- - -

The wind whipped around Vanya as she pulled her coat tightly around her. Storm clouds Had it been this bad when she’d left that morning? Had the forecast even shown a chance of rain for the coming days?

Her apartment was still a few blocks away. Every passing street sent another flutter of anxiety through her chest. Her pulse hadn’t slowed since she’d gone outside. The blood pounding in her ears hadn’t quieted, either.

The storm closing in, her drug addicted brother alone in her apartment with all of her possessions, her forgotten medication, the embarrassment following rehearsal. . . It was all too much.

The trees shook violently as she passed by, twisting in the howling wind.

What if he’d done something stupid in her apartment? She pictured broken furniture, an upturned apartment, police surrounding the area. It wasn’t much, but it was the only place she could call home. The Academy had never felt much like one.

Finally, just around the corner. She picked up speed, running to the entrance. The sky released its rains as the door shut behind her. She rushed up the stairs, three at a time as the rain pounded against the apartment complex.

She threw open the door. Her brother slouched where she’d left him that morning, head in hands. He glanced up at her. His eyes were bloodshot and pink-rimmed, liner smeared and running into his dark circles. His hair still fell around his face in a greasy mess, his normal curls flattened and sticking to his forehead with sweat. At first, he looked like he had managed to get high again. Vanya soon realized that wasn’t the case.

Klaus had been crying.

She nearly dropped the violin case.

“Klaus!”

All worry fell away for the moment. She ran over to him, placing a hesitant hand on her shoulder.

“Klaus. My god, what happened? Are you okay? ”

He shook his head. “He’s gone. . .”

“Who’s gone?”

“Ben. He’s. . .” Tears started welling at his waterline.

“Klaus. . .” Maybe he was out of it after all. “Ben’s been gone for-”

“That’s not what I mean!”

She drew back, voice caught in her throat. Klaus pressed the heels of his hands into his puffy eyes, and sighed.

“I-I don’t understand, Klaus.”

“No, no. I’m sorry. I guess I have something to tell you. It’s kind of an important confession.” Klaus drew his knees up to his chest.

“Alright. Give me one minute.”

Vanya ran to her room. After throwing her things on the bed and considering for a second, she pulled a bottle from a sock drawer. Rum she’d hidden last night. Whatever Klaus was going to confess, it was clearly big. He looked like he needed a drink as much as she did.

She ran back out to him, bottle in hand.

“Okay.” He rubbed his hands together, taking a deep breath. Noticing the rum, he furrowed his brow. “Wait a minute, did you hide that from me?”

“Uh. . . yes. I did.” She started pouring the liquor into two mismatched glasses.

He gave a little nod. “I knew it.”

“Hold on. You say that like you knew it wasn’t in the kitchen. Did you look through my house?”

“Yes.”

“Klaus!” The rain pounded against the window pane, nearly drowning out her yell.

“Actually that had something to do with this. Hear me out.”

“Okay, okay. Shoot.”

Vanya handed him a glass, and he greedily pulled it from her hands. Klaus took a long sip and a deep breath.

“I don’t know how to say put this delicately, so I’ll just say it. I can see Ben. I’ve kinda been able to for a while now.”

But, Klaus hadn’t been able to channel anyone for years. . .“How long is “a while”?”

“Since he died.”

Vanya said nothing, but her eyes grew wide.

“He’s always there. I mean always.” He made a wild gesture with his hands. “I can send the other ghosts away if I’m high. After you left, it started getting loud.” He pointed to his head, like the spirits of the dead were in there. “So, I looked around your apartment for something to quiet them for a bit. You had some pills in your bathroom.”

“You didn’t.” Her fear had come into fruition.

Weakly, he shrugged. “I did.”

A clap of thunder shuttered through the apartment.

“I need those, Klaus. Those were my last three. . . I haven’t filled them for a while. I’ve never gone this long without them!”

She swirled the golden liquid around, staring into her glass. Klaus gave another weak shrug.

“I’m sorry, Vanya.”

“No, it’s fine.” She bounced her leg as she said this. “I can try and get more tomorrow. Just, please don’t do it again. Anyway, keep going.”

“Right. Ben’s gone. And I’m coming down. And I have no idea what’s happening. This has never happened.”

The two said nothing for a while. They sipped their drinks and listened to the rain as it slowly dissipated.

“Do you think it could have been my meds? That made him go away, I mean.”

“I don't know. It doesn’t make much sense. I do harder stuff than anxiety meds for breakfast, V.” Klaus gave a goofy smile. “Even then it sometimes doesn’t work. Especially not with Ben.”

Vanya pursed her lips. This was a lot of information to process at once.

“Which is why I’m scared, Vanya.”

“What-”

“Like I said, I don’t know what’s happening. I’m not high. Like at all. But he’s gone. They’re all gone.”

He stared into his empty glass.

“I- I don't think I can help, Klaus.”

He shrugged. “You don’t have to. You’re right. You can’t even relate to it, just not having powers suddenly.” That stung. “But, can I just stay the night?”

Vanya didn’t miss a beat. “Absolutely.” She rose from her seat. “I’m going to go practice. Then we can eat something, and we can get some rest.”

He looked at her quizzically. “Weren’t you just at practice?” he asked/

“Yeah.” Vanya glanced away. “But I’ve been third chair for a few years now, and I was hoping that this year I could move up.”

“I’m going to pretend I understand what you just said.”

She smiled. “Okay, but please, just take it easy. You look like you’ve been through a lot over the past day.”

“Oh, you’re absolutely right. In fact, I’ve been through a lot for the past. . .” He pretended to count off his fingers. “Oh, let’s see. . . five. . . ten. . . Thirty years.”

“Haven’t we all. I’ll see you in a bit”

She retreated to her room. Violin under her chin, she started playing again. Once again, everything dissolved around her, the sound of the city, the wind in the trees, her neighbors below playing their TV far too loud.

Klaus started the shower in the bathroom. Unlike the night before, it pulled her gently, and the room slowly came back into view. How long had it been since his last shower? How long had he been wearing the same clothes? Now that she thought about it, where had he been staying before he arrived at her doorstep?  
He definitely needed a change of clothes. While not very feminine, most of her clothes were cut to fit her, and Klaus was significantly taller and lankier. She rooted around, finding a pair of black sweatpants that looked like it would reasonably fit her brother, and an oversized white t-shirt.Would he mind wearing her clothes?

She folded the outfit and placed it outside the bathroom. The shower was still running from within. Klaus was humming to himself. It was a familiar tune, something that brought back memories of life at the Academy, but she couldn’t quite place it.

She continued her practice. Without much through, the song drifted to the same one Klaus had been humming. It’s name was right on the tip of her tongue. Vanya cycled through more songs, interlacing the orchestra's for one’s she’d memorized over the years.

When she finally emerged from the room, Klaus was on his normal place on the couch, hair still damp and returning to it’s curl. He was wearing the clothes she’d left out for him. The pants were a bit short, but otherwise fit fine. He was flipping through Extra Ordinary. He looked up when she came through the hall.

“Ah, the family secrets.” He closed the book. “As hurt as I am of what you would say about me,” he feigned offence, dramatically placing a hand to his chest. “It’s good to know the whole world knows how much of an asshole dad is.”

Vanya blushed, unsure how to respond. She didn’t have to though, as Klaus changed the subject.

“You really are amazing at that thing.” He nodded toward her room.

“Oh, I don’t know about tha-”

“No, seriously!” He leaned closer to her. “It’s like I was getting lost in the music or something. It sounded incredible! And you’re only third place?”

“Third chair. But yeah. I don’t know, I don’t think I’m that good.” She went to the kitchen to start dinner.

“Don’t be silly. You’re great.”

“Well, if you like my playing, you should hear Helen.”

“Helen?”

“Oh, she’s from the Orchestra. First chair.”

Vanya talked about her life, playing violin for the orchestra, giving lessons to kids around the neighborhood. As she talked, she threw together dinner for the two, pasta and jarred sauce (It had been a while since her last shopping trip). Klaus scarfed down his bowl, then a second and a third. She realized she didn’t even know when the last time he ate was, let alone the last time he’d had anything resembling a meal.

He was uncharacteristically quiet during dinner. Vanya filled the silence with stories of her life since she’d left, hoping to get something out of Klaus. Nothing came. He stayed fairly closed up about his life, mostly talking about shared memories from childhood.

“And you’re sure the couch is fine for tonight?” she asked as she put the dishes in the sink and tidied up.

“Yep!”

“I guess I’ll see you tomorrow. We can try to figure it out then.”

He threw himself on the couch, waving goodnight to his sister.

Vanya closed the door to her room as she got ready for bed. Normally, sh left the doors in her house open, but now that there was another person. It was throwing her off.

She lie up in bed for what felt like a long time, unable to sleep. Ben had been with Klaus this whole time. His powers had been as strong as ever for all these years. But as soon as he’d come into her house, they were just gone, along with Ben. Maybe that’s my power, Vanya thought, only half jokingly, Making everyone as average as me.

A slight tapping on her door pulled her from her thoughts. Seconds later, another knock at the door, this one harder.

“Come in?”

Klaus appeared, still in his borrowed sleepwear. He was shaking slightly, looking paler than normal. “Can I ask you something?”

“Uh, go ahead.” She sat up.

“It’s quiet out there. Really quiet. And. . . uh. . .” He scratched the back of his head. “Could I sleep in here tonight?”

A memory bubbled up in Vanya’s mind. The seven had been young at the time, no more than seven or eight years old. Her super-powered siblings had been training all day. Their powers were still new and strange, but even so, their father had pushed them. Hard. Vanya watched from the window of her room as the six drilled in the courtyard, practicing hand-to-hand combat and using their abilities to spar with each other.

Luther and Klaus were paired up, though, Vanya remembered they hadn’t been called that at the time. Back then, they were still Number One and Number Four. They were fighting right beneath the window. Klaus ran at his brother, who effortlessly lifted the smaller boy, throwing him to his back. Vanya recoiled from her window as Klaus slammed against the ground. He tried to cry out in pain, but the wind had been knocked from him. He gasped for breath, then let out an ear splitting yell. The other siblings stopped, Allison dropping Ben from the headlock she held him in, Five and Diego pulling away from each other.

Their father went over to the injured Four. He glanced over his once, then yanked the sobbing boy up by the arm.

“That will be enough for today. To bed, all of you.” His voice had been filled with disappointment. Vanya could hear it all the way from her room.

Vanya drew back from the window.

Klaus came into her room late that night, crying, covered in bruises. Wordlessly, he slipped into her bed, and she hugged him. Ben, looking for his brother, followed. Allison must have heard the other two enter, because pretty soon, she was in the bed, too.

Before the night ended, all seven of the Hargreeves were snuggled up in the same bed, bruised and battered, crying silently to themselves in the comfort of each other’s presence. It was one of the only times Vanya had felt included with her brothers and sister.

Looking at her brother, standing there, all she could see was that little boy who’d gotten hurt during training. The same little boy who’d never gone to rehab, who’d never stolen from her or her siblings.

“Of course, Klaus.”

He sat in a little bench near her closet, positioning himself around the laundry she'd piled there. He slouched slightly against the wall.

“Klaus, you don’t have to sleep there.” Her queen bed had plenty of room to comfortably fit two with room to spare, and she expressed as much.

“Oh, Vanya, you don’t have to do that. I’ve slept in worse places than here.”

“Are you sure?” He nodded. “I mean, if you really don’t want to. Goodnight, Klaus.”

“Night, Vanya.”

She rolled over to the wall. Klaus shifted in his seat every few seconds. There was no way it was a comfortable place to sleep. She heard him stand, quietly moving towards the bed. Carefully, he slipped into the sheets behind her. Vanya slid her hand back, grabbing his shoulder in what she hoped was an encouraging little squeeze.

“Thank you.” It was under his breath, so quiet that even right beside him, she barely heard it.

He turned around, trying to find a comfortable position, but finally fell into a fitful sleep. As she drifted into sleep herself, one thought stayed in her mind.

What am I going to do with him?

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I got a lot of positive feedback from the first chapter, so here's Chapter two! I'd like to thank everyone who commented and gave Kudos, you mean a lot :)
> 
> Thanks for reading, and stay tuned for the next chapter and feel free to give critisism
> 
> PS. Enjoy the fanart :)

**Author's Note:**

> Thanks for taking a look at my first fanfiction :)
> 
> Sorry if the characters seem out of character, I'm tryng my best to keep it true to them. I don't really know what I'm doing, but I'll hopefully get better.
> 
> Also, sorry it's so short.
> 
> You can probably get an idea where this story is going. if I get any positive feedback, I'll continue with it.


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